Resignation
of Cabinet staffperson and Information Commissioner's investigation
only symbols of how federal
Conservatives have broken
their
open
government
promises
Set out below is a
letter-to-the-editor
by Democracy Watch Coordinator
Duff Conacher which was published in the October 11, 2010 issue of the Hill Times

Dear Editor,

Canadians should be just as concerned about the actions (or inaction)
of all Conservative Cabinet ministers as they are about the actions of
the one Cabinet staff person (Sebastian
Togneri) who has correctly resigned and is under investigation
by the Information Commissioner for wrongfully interfering
with access-to-information requests.

The Conservative Cabinet has broken their 2006 election promises to
require all government and government-funded institutions to create
records detailing all their actions and decisions, and to give the
Information Commissioner the power to order the disclosure of any
record if it is in the public interest and would not cause any actual
harm to anyone or any organization. (To
see Democracy
Watch's December 2009 Report Card on the Conservatives' 29 broken
promises, click here).

Until these changes are made, and the Information Commissioner is also
given the power to penalize violators, it is very likely that federal
politicians, their staff and government officials will continue to
violate the spirit and intent of the access-to-information system.

Similar changes are needed across Canada to ensure all governments are
effectively required to operate openly, and to prevent secrecy that is
a recipe for corruption, waste and abuse of the public.

NOTE: See set out below
the Conservatives' promises quoted from their 2006 platform, and to see
details about a court case appeal the Conservatives are challenging to
hide information, click
here.

ONE PROMISE PARTIALLY KEPT:
"Expand the coverage of the [Access
to Information Act] to all Crown corporations, Officers of
Parliament, foundations, and organizations that spend taxpayers’ money
or perform public functions"

(NOTE: the Federal Accountability Act
(FAA) added 50 new federal
government institutions to the list of institutions covered by the Access to Information Act, but did
keep the promise of extending the Act
to all government and government-funded organizations. The FAA also changed the Act to allow draft reports to be
kept secret until finalized (delaying access significantly))

EIGHT PROMISES NOT KEPT:
"Implement the Information Commissioner’s recommendations for reform of
the Access to Information Act."

"Give the Information Commissioner the power to order the release of
information."

"Subject the exclusion of Cabinet confidences to review by the
Information Commissioner."

"Oblige public officials to create the records necessary to document
their actions and decisions."

"Provide a general public interest override for all exemptions, so that
the public interest is put before the secrecy of the government.

"Ensure that all exemptions from the disclosure of government
information are justified only on the basis of the harm or injury that
would result from disclosure, not blanket exemption rules."

"Ensure that the disclosure requirements of the Access to Information Act cannot be
circumvented by secrecy provisions in other federal acts, while
respecting the confidentiality of national security and the privacy of
personal information."

"Require
ministers
and senior government officials to record their contacts with
lobbyists."